Thursday, July 2, 2009

Let's Get Physical

As I meander through this latest chapter (and I do mean meander), I am also starting to think ahead to the fall and what I need to do physically to prepare for the topic of my last post. This means major detoxing, shearing off all unwanted and un-needed additives in my life.

Now, I'm a hoarder. I hoard all kinds of things (much like the dragon in Beowulf...grrr...) - I hoard Cheetos, cake, Coke Zero, pounds, Miller Lite, and medications. I like additives. A lot. But, I'm determined, so I've begun peeling off certain meds (I need to talk to my doctor in mid-August about going off my last one and I'm holding onto my Ambien until I absolutely need to give it up). And I'm also trying to shed some poundage - TD and I watched some WebMD clips that noted the need to be at a healthy body weight becoming "with sprog" and my eyes bugged out instantly until the doctor qualified it with "as close as possible to your ideal body weight" - even a moderate weight loss is beneficial. This seems more manageable given the fact that I'm also trying to finish my book at the moment - I'm in no frame of mind to go completely cold turkey on my little yummy vices at this point.

Toward this moderate goal, however, I'm going to the gym a couple of times a week, I'm eating better (bulking up on the folic acid, with food and supplements), and have recently begun yoga twice a week. Now this is my kind of workout! Why did I never do this before? I can wear lovely flowy clothes and do comfy, contortive (though often delightfully strenuous) things on a cushy mat. I can be barefoot while I exercise! So, I have jumped into this with both (bare) feet - I just purchased this yoga mat set - love the color! I know it's kinda "matchy-matchy"...

4 comments:

Wow! Good for you! When I first got pregnant, it was a TOTAL surprise with a new boyfriend (thank god I knew some of his family--his "people" as my Southern family says).

I was at a friend's house, took a pg test, and it was positive. I wept uncontrollably while she said, "Get thee some folic acid!" (She had a 10 week old baby.) That evening I went to Trader Joe's to try to find some healthy food, and then I went home and watched six episodes of Sex in the City in a row while trying to choke down a cheese quesadilla (the father to be was on an extreme kayaking trip 3,000 miles away. But now he's my husband, so it all worked out).

Anyway, it sounds as if you will be much more prepared that I was. I think it's good to go into a pregnancy feeling as strong as possible. Way to prepare for that medieval sprog!

Very exciting! Yeah, the whole detox thing ... supposedly it's advisable to be cleansed of bad substances in the three months preceding actually getting pregnant. As in, no drinking, medication, etc., starting 90 days before date of intended conception. If only it were that easy.

When I got pregnant, they suggested I have lots of strawberries, seaweed (not together), and electrolyte water to try to get pregnant. The zinc in strawberries is supposed to be especially good. So, a great reason to eat fruit in season.

"It was lying on a butcher's block, not crying, although there was snow, but warm and chuckling under a comforter of stray cats. They were all purring together, and the sound was heavy with knowledge. I stood by the strange cradle for a long time, pondering while the snow fell and the cats purred prophecy."